The new throttle body was installed and all problems are gone. No engine codes have reappeared. All disappointment from the last 6 months have evaporated and it is as though Gandhi has blessed my bike. Honestly, it runs smoother as a turbo 120 than it did as a regular 120. I can't wait to gas it up to check M.P.G's. As a plain 120R it got 31-32 mpg's and I expect more now.

When you go to take off, you take up the 1/8th" slack in the throttle cable and you are driving on a very small amount of twisting. You aren't really into any boost but yet the machine is still faster and better running. If you didn't know you had a turbo you would simply think that you had a great bike that any normal citizen could be happy with. But it is after all, a racing engine with a turbo and a Baker 7 speed with a smaller pulley on a light-weight Harley SuperGlide driven by a a skinny driver. The front tire will raise up off the ground if a rider is not careful. Dyna numbers in a week or two, rain today, but I have rain gear and this thing is coming to work with me now.

 

My experience for what's it worth would be this....
1. Tune the bike on the dyno
2. Try the bike on the street, and ID any dead or "not on" spots in the curve
3. Let the Thundermax auto tune the very fine refinements required after you get it

Past experience is that the Thundermax will not auto tune away short comings in your map... In most cases, on my new maps we go through the procedure noted above, with several adjustments occurring in the ride and and adjust as noted in item # 2
The clear learning should reflect, a stock bike map may not work on a bike with air, spark, fuel changes. When you take a stock map form a dead stock bike, they usually work. Yet when you start with a stock map and apply to a bike with any mods to the Air, fuel, spark, minor changes to the map may be required.

I have tried the several auto tune units, with the Thundermax standing out as the clear choice that worked best for me....

 

Test riding in the wet! I tried that, but the rear kept stepping out when I got over enthusiastic with the throttle (and how can but not give it a good twist when you know you have a turbo just waiting to start singing...lol)

Totally agree with above though - get the thing on a dyno and get the tune nailed! And make sure the tuner knows turbos. I would give anything to have the luxury of a fuel injected engine over my humble tweaked CV Carb as tuning a blower carb is a real PITA.

And now we can formally "Welcome you to the Snail Club"

 

Day 2 with the turbo Superglide is a snowy day. The snow won't stick, but not much riding today. As for tuning. It's not only me and all of you that wants to see some numbers but the bike shop is also anxious. I've developed friends there out of the employees and the many customers and they've asked every day how it is going and have followed the progress faithfully including feeling badly when it didn't go so good. The dyna at this shop has a remote big T.V. screen in the front that shows dyna numbers and we all stand cheering and looking up at it.

One number that I can give you though is the number that stops everyone on the planet from having a turbo. The cost. I don't have the paperwork in front of me, and remember that I purchased a Switchback rear wheel ($450+labor) that you all may not want, went to a smaller pulley (couple hundred+labor), T-Max computer (almost $800-$900,) Turbo $5000-$7500 depending on your engine+labor. For me the total was $11,000.Well worth it when you consider that you never want another bike.

 

Here is another piece of worthless advise.... While on the dyno, don't focus on the big number.... focus on the drivability tuning..... look for dead spots while rolling on at minimum throttle .... 2100 - 2600 rpm... slow pulls...if you have some good fuel, try a couple lugs down low.... Your right on the cost issue, nothing comes cheap, and the fun factor will be there what ever the final big number comes to be. By the way, the cost factor on increased hp is not linear. It really gets steep after 230 hp

 

Gas tank is filled, odometer reset, and the M.P.G.'s will be tested. What a machine this is to own. I have to learn how to ride all over again.

 

40mpg on my turbo Evo....Mileage shoudl not really change UNLESS you get a little happy with the throttle...lol

 

All my turbo's gave me as good or better than my wife on her 110.... the how.... short and skip shifting running way down the rpm range. Need to avoid lugging, yet if you keep rpm and tip in the throttle easy, the mileage will show up..... Should you ride and accelerate and run the rpm like on a stock engine, and I found the mileage went way down.... This theory worked good up my 131 inch turbo last year.... This year new gigantic intake and cylinder heads from S&S race program may cost me dearly with the mileage.... But yet more power !

 

It's day 5 and I've got my rain suit ready for the commute to work. But an interesting thing happened yesterday. I was first in line at the traffic light and decided to run the throttle up very quickly to the 45mph speed limit and the force that pushed my helmet rearwards came as a shock to me. I didn't expect this much pressure pressing against my forehead. I'm very happy that I spent this money on a turbo. There's no regrets. Can't wait to ride to work. Can't wait to ride home.

 

7 days now, not counting one day that it snowed, and yesterday the front 2 exhaust nuts unscrewed themselves off and I blew out the front exhaust gasket. Completely my fault and I'll keep a closer eye on the bike from now on. It's fixed but I ordered the special nuts kit that will stop this from happening again. It sounded like a head gasket at first so I feel very lucky.

A peculiar thing happens and I'll figure out why, and it's that I have 3lbs of boost at idle on morning start-ups but at after work start-ups will have very little boost at idle.